


monsters (stuck in your head)

by Ameliapll



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Angst, Hartley and Axel are protective of each other, Kidnapping, M/M, Manipulating, Mentions of past abuse, Protectiveness, Violence, references to past abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-23
Updated: 2018-01-23
Packaged: 2019-03-08 12:49:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13458621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ameliapll/pseuds/Ameliapll
Summary: "You tried to ignore him. You can't do that. He doesn't get it. All his life he was ignored, you can't just pretend like he doesn't exist."---Or, Axel Walker kidnaps Cisco and Caitlin for a very specific reason.Hartley Rathaway.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is personally based off of a theory I had, where Hartley tells Axel about STAR labs, and that's why Cisco and Caitlin get abducted.

Axel Walker pouted. His two hostages were still asleep! Boring. Mentally, he remembered why he'd chosen those two- out of everyone. Hartley Rathaway. The brunette recently had shown up at Axel's doorway, after a fight, trying to look intimidating in a worn black hoodie and with swollen, tear filled eyes. One slightly questioning look, and then Hartley revealed the pain in his past, accidentally slipping two names.  
Caitlin Snow. Cisco Ramon.

Which brought Axel to this moment.

Cisco stirred from where he was tied to his chair. "W-what? Where am I?" he murmured, still drowsy.

Axel took his cue and entered the room. "Good morning!" he practically hollered, causing Cisco to groan.

"Why'd you...I was at S.T.A.R."  
The mention of S.T.A.R. labs caused fury to shoot up Axel's spine. While the place and the people in it had personally never hurt him, they had hurt Hartley badly. That pissed Axel off. Yeah, okay, so Hartley could be slightly abrasive. And quite rude on the best of days. And sometimes short tempered. But he still didn't deserve to be tortured, abused  

"Yes, you were,"

"Did you hack into our security?" Cisco demanded, glaring.

"No, I had a friend," Axel drawled the word friend out so long there was no question in either mind what intention the word friend had. "He taught me how your little laboratory works."

"Wally?" Cisco asked.

"Who?" Axel replied. "And you should possibly stop revealing who works with you,"

"Is this because I'm Vibe and Caitlin's Frost?" Cisco asked, trying a new tactic.

"What? No. But thanks for revealing your secret identities. Now, my friend revealed that you tortured him," Axel leaned down. "I'm not okay with that,"

"Look, you're going to kill us," Cisco said, trying to stay calm. Axel smiled brightly, neither confirming nor denying his statement. Truthfully, he wouldn't. He knew reports of this would make Hartley feel all guilty, which was not the point of this excercise. "Why don't you just tell us your friends name?"

"Well, if you insist," Axel sighed dramatically. "Hart Rathaway,"

"Hartley?" Cisco blinked. "You mean, the Hartley Rathaway who is a dick to everyone?"

It was clearly a kneejerk reaction, but Axel still snarled and pressed a button, causing a knife to fall out of the ceiling and land right next to Cisco's foot.

"Every time you insult Hart, another knife will drop," Axel said cheerily, despite anger flooding him.

Of course Hartley had his common moments of being a dick. Of course he was cruel at times, and he knew how to tear people down. But..  
And maybe it was that Axel had gotten so used to Hartley's snarky yet slightly sweet personality that made him so angry whenever someone insulted him.

  
"Right. Sorry. Now, what did you want to talk about?" Cisco said. His apology was immensely insincere but Axel let it go.

"Hart."

"What about him?"

  
"You tried to ignore him," Axel said, and his voice shook with anger. "You can't do that. He doesn't get it. All his life he was ignored, you can't just pretend like he doesn't exist. He matters."

Axel- despite his best attempts- couldn't help but think back to when he was a kid. Constantly ignored no matter how hard he tried to be noticed. Until he'd talked to James Jesse, who'd made him do things. Hurt people.

  
He inhaled, turning away from Cisco. This wasn't about him. This was about Hart. His Hart. Axel exhaled, keeping Hartley on his mind.

"Apologies for the small party," Axel said, forcing his tone to stay peppy. "While I normally prefer a larger crowd, Rachel and Osgood Rathaway are on an unexpected trip,"

Yeah, to hell. Axel may have told Mark and Shawna- Hartley's closest friends in the rogues- about how the Rathaway's treated Hartley and then may have whispered their location to them and let them loose.

  
Axel could see Cisco wasn't sure what to say.

"Hartley was always a dick. We thought ignoring him...that it was for the best," was what he settled on. Axel snarled and lunged forwards, trusty hand knife inches from Cisco's throat.

"Don't," he snarled, voice raw and angry. "Don't you put it back on him, don't you dare. Hart is...a dick, sure. An ass, definitely. But you can't ignore him. You can't just pretend he doesn't exist. He matters. He fucking matters, so don't you dare try and pretend ignoring him was on him."

"Okay," Cisco said quickly. "Okay,"

Axel nodded. He could have gotten into the Eobard debacle, but he decided not to, seeing as Hartley was adamant that Cisco and Caitlin weren't allowed to know about how Eobard hurt Hartley.

  
"So, you and Hartley," Cisco offered after a bout of silence. "I can't say I wasn't surprised about that one,"

"Neither can I," Axel agreed with a small smile. He remembered how they'd met, Axel breaking into his apartment, putting a gun to Hartley's head, the feeling of amazement when Hartley made a snippy remark instead of fear.

"But it's good. It's so good."

"Not to insult Hartley, but I would have thought you couldn't stand him. He's very...tense about proper dressing,"

"I guess he just relaxes around me." Axel decided not to mention how Hartley stole his shirts because they were more comfortable and less scratchy than his own.

"Guess so," Cisco shrugged at the same time Caitlin moaned lightly, waking up.

"Listen, Cisco, it was nice of you to listen, but I'm still going to have to torture you," Axel shrugged, preparing his Wheel of Doom. ("Axel, why?" Hartley had groaned upon seeing some of his puns).

Maybe he hadn't completely soothed the wound, but he hoped that maybe, just maybe, next time Hartley had to go to STAR labs, it would be easier for him.


	2. Chapter 2

Hartley Rathaway sat at home, anxious that Axel may have snapped and murdered Cisco and Caitlin.   
That one night, where he let go of everything he'd bottled up, he'd seen something in Axel's face. Protectiveness. Anger.

The front door swung open and Zoey and Axel walked in.

"Aw, you waited up, Hart?" Axel teased

"How are neither of you arrested?" Hartley laughed.

"Easy. I negotiated," Axel said proudly. Hartley spluttered.

  
"You negotiated?"

"I find it frankly hurtful you doubt me," Axel pouted.

"I negotiated," Zoey said in a stage whisper. "Cisco and Caitlin in exchange for a swift escape,"

"Well done," Hartley nodded, impressed.He started, a moment later, when Axel grabbed his arm and tugged him down onto the couch next to him, one hand curling around his shoulder. Apparently all the talks about not sneaking up behind Hartley had gone over Axel's head. Still, Hartley had to smile as he relaxed.

Axel was truly unlike anyone Hartley had met. And it wasn't just because of the glaring pattern clashes. He didn't want anything from Hartley, just general love. And he didn't care when Hartley was being a dick. For some reason, it seemed like he found it more funny than angering.   
He remembered Wells pointed comments about how Cisco wouldn't behave like Hartley did, about his parents- mostly his dad- cruel comments. The time his dad slapped him when Hartley spoke back.

Axel was a psychotic murderer who wore plaid and stripes in the same shirt. He shouldn't have been so perfect for Hartley.

Yet, here he was. No inheritance, no legal job, and sitting on a sagging off blue couch, a murderer's arm resting just behind Hartley's shoulder, finger brushing the collar of Hartley's shirt, and the happiest he'd been

How fate was liable to change.  
Speaking of fate...

"So what did you do to Ramon and Snow,"

"Not much. The newest spandex clad superhero showed up just after a little..."   
Hartley had a sinking feeling about Axel's hesitance.

"Acid splash?"

"Axel!" Hartley exclaimed, frowning disapprovingly.

"It didn't hit them," Axel spoke up. Zoey had left the room after some   
conversation with Axel, likely while Hartley had been deep in thought.

"The acid," Hartley said softly. "You made sure it didn't hit them?"

"Mostly,"

Hartley rolled his eyes but smiled.

And when Axel leaned down and kissed him, Hartley didn't worry, for once, about whether Axel was secretly bored with him, whether he wanted Hartley to just leave.

He knew, now, that Axel wouldn't hurt him in such a way.

  
When they pulled back, Hartley grinned. Yeah. This was good.   
He was good.


	3. 3

  
It was good until Axel started leaving fairly early, too early, and without explanation. For a while, Hartley's warring emotions turned him into knots.

He knew it was too good to be true, why the fuck did he let himself get comfortable? He should have kept his guard up even slightly and now look at him and he was such an idiot and nonononono.

And then Zoey walked in. Her face was grim.

"Hart, it's Jesse. James. Jesse. I think..I know, I followed Axel one time."

"You what?" Hartley asked. Normally, the idea of a responsible adult following Axel made sense, but Hartley's past with his parents had led him to be touchy about parents spying on their kids.

Not that Zoey would ever disown Axel. After the mess with James Jesse, the two had worked out some of their issues and decided to cut the elder trickster out of their lives.

This fact did not, in fact, stop any of their criminal lives, of course. It only enhanced them.

"I know how you feel about that, and I didn't want to, but I was as worried as you,"

  
"Look," Hartley cut her off and held up a hand, "Lets go back to that later. What's happening with James Jesse?"

  
Now, though Zoey and Hartley had talked about a few of their...challenges, Hartley had yet to inform her about the unthinking wrath that was him angered.

So Zoey told Hartley about how she worked out about the manipulation, about fifteen year old Axel and his emotionally abusive adoptive family and how he reached out to James Jesse for comfort and, either didn't notice or kindly didn't point out, the features in Hartley's face becoming colder and harder until he excused himself politely, and left the house.

As he searched for Axel, his blood boiled faster and harder. All he could see was Wells and Jesse. Trying to hurt Hartley and everyone Hartley cared for.

He was not going to let Axel be hurt again. So, he found Jesse and Axel and drove a fist into Jesse's face and then let it go again. He could hear himself yelling something, but he couldn't hear words.

  
Suddenly, someone grabbed him, pulling him out of his trance.

"Hart," Axel said, slightly confusedly, "You're here,"

"You," Hartley growled, "and I are having a little chat about father figures when I finish murdering-"

"Come on, Hart, he can't hurt anyone,"

"He hurt you," Hartley said, and then cursed himself for letting an ounce of vulnerability into his tone.

"Aw, Hart. Look, it's really sweet of you to defend my honour and all but...it's not a big deal."

"Yeah, Axel," Hartley spat, and when Jesse moved, he kicked him. Hard. "It is a big deal,"

"Listen, hart, I promise you. It's not a big thing. I'm okay. You're okay. Right? He can't hurt anyone. Especially not now,"

Hartley stared up at Axel. Normally, this was reversed. Normally, Hartley was trying to calm Axel down while Axel was trying to kill someone.

"He's not-" and Hartley's voice cracked, so he tried to channel Len's icy coolness, "He's not allowed to hurt you. That's not okay."

"Come on," Axel said. "Let's get you home,"

  
"Just a sec," Hartley said, and stood on Jesse's hand, hearing it crunch.

"If you go near Axel again, if you try and manipulate him, if you even consider writing a single letter to him, so help me god, I will kill you. Slowly. Painfully. For months. I could shear The Flash's organs apart if I wanted to. What the fuck do you think I can do to yours?"

He turned to Axel and grabbed his boyfriends hand and led him out of the warehouse.

  
Both he and Axel had shitty, god awful pasts, but now they had each other. And no one would hurt Axel Walker while Hartley Rathaway was there. 


	4. Chapter 4

Hartley was sleeping, but for once, Axel wasn't. It was early dawn, probably a good time to sleep, and yet...something in him couldn't.

He remembered the wild fury on Hartley's normally sweet-ish face, the look of uncontrollable rage, purely directed at James Jesse.

For Axel.

No one had ever gotten angry like that on Axel's behalf. His whole life, he was the one in the wrong.

But with Hartley, maybe he could be right.

  
He thought back to Hartley's furious speech, bitten by harsh breaths, and paused. Had James Jesse manipulated him? Certainly, one could put two and two together and get that conclusion, but Axel...had Axel had the capability to cause mayhem without him?

He couldn't remember his life before James Jesse. Maybe he was born to cause pain. Maybe he would cause Hart pain. He inhaled to calm himself, accidentally bumping Hartley and waking him.

"Axe? What's wrong?" Hartley muttered, too drowsy to make a comment about how rude it was to wake someone up at a particular hour. Then he saw Axel's face, shifted upright and wrapped his arms around him. Axel buried his head in Hartley's hair, memorising the familiar scent- soft, but slightly burnt- til his breathing evened.

"You okay?" Hartley whispered.

"Yeah," Axel replied

"Bullshit." Hartley said frankly, and Axel couldn't help but grin into Hartley's hair, "But I'm not pressing you on it."

"Hart?" Axel asked. "Why'd you lose your shit at James Jesse?"

"Because," and Hartley did that thing where he hesitated slightly, eyeing up the other person to see if they would get angry with him before he spoke, "Zoey told me about how he manipulated you when you were a kid. I don't know, I just..."

"But why did it make you angry?"

"Axe, I love you, you're an idiot. It made me angry because I love you, because I want to be with you, and I'm not okay with someone hurting you,"

"Well," Axel replied, taken aback. "I love you, too, Hart,"

"You're an idiot," Hartley said, but it sounded like he was blushing. "Now, go to fucking sleep,"

  
"Hart," Axel said, once both of them were lying down and drifting off. "Yknow, if I found out anyone was still hurting you, I'd probably murder them, right? Like I'd be theatrical about it- no, don't laugh, it's important to stick to a theme, Hart- but I'd murder them. You deserve to be happy,"

"So do you," Hartley replied, flipping onto his other side, so he could make eye contact with Axel before he fell asleep again.

 

Lying there, in the dark, Axel couldn't help but smile and move so he was holding Hartley. He kind of felt Hartley needed that sometimes, to feel loved

So did he.

Maybe they looked after each other before they looked after themselves, but it wasn't a big deal.

After all, what was life without a little bit of pain?


End file.
